Making Tracks: A formal affair on Radar Ridge

Making Tracks

By Kat Bryant

A few weeks ago, Harbor photographer Marcy Merrill proposed that I participate in her series called “Formalwear Worn Inappropriately.” I gleefully accepted, being a huge fan of her work. Later, we settled on a date: Aug. 21, in celebration of the solar eclipse.

I drove down to Radar Ridge early Monday morning with my son, Garrett, and my dog, Rose. (And I do mean early — it was still quite dark and foggy when we left Aberdeen.) The former military facility is just north of Naselle, with a spectacular view of the Columbia River Valley and the ocean. At 7:30, after driving the final 7 miles uphill on a rocky, rutted road, we reached the spot Marcy had scouted out for our photo shoot. My little Kia may never forgive me, but it was worth it.

As we’d hoped, traffic was nil. A couple dozen other people made the bumpy trip up the hill, but most were locals.

Marcy and her husband, Bob, arrived and started setting up their camera equipment. She also pulled a storage tub out of her SUV and invited me to choose one of the several ballgowns she’d brought along in my size. We agreed the most appropriate “eclipse gown” for me was a long, black strapless number embellished with large rhinestones. She then changed into her selection, a sequined deep-purple beauty.

Shortly after that, Erin Young arrived in a smashing Goth-style outfit she’d put together, including a necklace and a headdress she’d created herself. “Given the occasion, I thought I’d go for something dark,” she laughed.

In between chatting with neighboring eclipse-watchers and following the event’s progress with solar glasses, Garrett was quite helpful as a camera assistant. And Rose, as always, was friendly and accommodating; she even posed for several pics with us.

We gals had loads of fun in our lovely dresses and miscellaneous eyewear (including a welder’s helmet), but we were surprised it remained so bright outside — even at the height of the eclipse, which reached 97 percent totality at that location.

“My cousin told me it would be like a lake of darkness,” Marcy said, disappointed.

Instead, it seemed to me like a scene from Westerns made in the 1960s and ’70s, when cinematographers would place a filter over the camera lens to make it look like nighttime — but we were never fooled.

We had planned to conduct one of Marcy’s famous gown-burnings while we were up there, but the brush was extremely dry and too many people were around. I’m hoping to join her for one of those parties sometime soon, under safer circumstances.

Kat Bryant is lifestyle editor of The Daily World. Reach her at kbryant@thedailyworld.com or on Facebook at Kat Bryant-DailyWorld.